ED421 Elementary Science Methods

INSTRUCTIONAL PLANNING TEMPLATE

for planning science lessons

Overview and Context

Your name(s):
Grade level and school:
Title of lesson/activity:
Teaching date(s) and
time(s):
Estimated time for
lesson/activity:
Overview of lesson:

Context of lesson:

Sources:

Chelsie Seruga
1st grade, Bach Elementary
Water Freezes: Frost
Thursday December 3, 2015
40 minutes
Children create frost and observe the conditions
that are conducive to frost formation. They learn
that frost, like dew, is water that comes out of
the air. They also learn that frost, unlike dew,
forms as tiny ice crystals rather than water
droplets. In cold climates, the children examine
winter frost and draw pictures of it.
The lesson follows the Ice and Water lessons in
the weather: cluster 3- water. Students will
continue to build their knowledge of water in the
3 states of matter over the course of this lesson
and how it applies to the weather.
Weather Cluster 3: Water

Learning Goals and Assessments

Learning Goals (1-2
in each)

SCIENCE
CONTENT /
DISCIPLINARY CORE
IDEAS
Students will be
able to observe

Connection to
Standards
(Michigan GLCEs
and/or Next
Generation
Science
Standards)
P.PM.E.2 States of
Matter- Matter
exists in several
different states:
solids, liquids and
gases. Each state

Type of
Assessment

Connection to
Activities

Work book
page 17

Examining how
frost forms on an
aluminum can

frost and explain

how it is formed.

of matter has
unique physical
properties.

SCIENTIFIC
PRACTICES
Students will be
able to utilize tools
to gather
information and
record data.

S.IP.01.14
Manipulate simple
tools (for
example: hand
lens, pencils,
rulers,
thermometers,
rain gauges,
balances, nonstandard objects
for measurement)
that aid
observation and
data collection.

IF APPLICABLE:
CROSSCUTTING
CONCEPTS
Students will be
able to
IF PREFERRED: You
may integrate your
learning goal
statement
(disciplinary core
idea x scientific
practice x
crosscutting
concept)

Work book
page 17

Examining the
temperature at
which frost forms
by looking at a
thermometer in
table groups

EEE Connection
Investigation question
students will answer:
Claim with evidence and
reasoning you hope
students will generate:

What happens when we make a can really

cold?
I think frost forms on the outside of a can
when we make it really cold (claim).
I think this because I've seen ice crystals, or
frost, form on the outside of a can when we
made it really cold with ice and salt. I saw
the temperature drop on the thermometer
so I know the can was getting colder after
the ice and the salt was put in the can.
The science idea or principle that helps me
explain this is frost forms on freezing cold
objects from water vapor in the air. This helps
me use my evidence to support my claim because
I saw frost forming on the can once the
water was freezing cold.

Attending to the Learners

Anticipating student
ideas, including
alternative ideas,
misconceptions, and prior
knowledge:
Making the content
accessible to all students,
including using specific
leverage points for
promoting equitable
science instruction from
class:

Frost is leaking through the can

Frost outside is snow that falls

In order to make the content accessible to all

students, it is important that the students get
the chance to use the materials in a way that
supports their learning and understanding of the
lesson. Students will also be encouraged to
make predictions about frost and come up with a
conclusion based around the data that we
recorded and the evidence that we found.
Participation from all students will be expected
but will look differently across the board such as
students sharing answers, students repeating
other students answers, giving a thumbs
up/down to agree/disagree, etc.

Instructional Sequence
Materials

5 aluminum cans

5 thermometers
Ice
Salt
Water
Humidifier
Instructional Sequence: Engage Element
Steps for Engage Element

Time

The teacher will:

The students will:

15
minutes

Inside the Classroom

Today for science we

are going to be looking
at frost and learning
about how it forms.
Where are some places
you have seen frost
before?
Yes, sometimes we see
frost on windows or cars.
Right now we are going
to go outside to look at
the frost on the grass
right outside the
classroom. We will be
using magnifying
glasses as tools today to
observe frost on the
grass up close. We will
have to be responsible
1st graders and share
our magnifying glasses
with our friends because
we dont have enough
for everyone.
We are going to get in a
quiet line to go outside.
Remember, we are

Students answer
question about where
they have seen frost

observing the frost.

Think about what you
are noticing when you
are looking at it. What
does it look like? What
does it feel like?
Outside the Classroom

Take a magnifying
glass and really
observe the frost on
the grass.

Walk around with

different students
and ask them
questions such as
o Where does the
frost come
from?
o What will
happen to the
frost later in
the day?

Gather your final

thoughts about the
frost. We are going to
head back inside. Sit
on the carpet and we
will talk about what
we found.

Inside the Classroom

Raise your hand to

tell me one thing you
noticed about the
frost.

Good. So we just
observed frost that
was already formed
outside and today we
are going to try to
create our own frost
and see how it
forms.

Today we are going to

be doing an
experiment. We want
to answer this
question: What
happens when we
make a can really
cold? Answering this
question will help us
learn about how how
and why frost forms.

Management Considerations for Engage Element:

-

Transitions between inside and outside

Allowing students time to put on their winter jackets/take off

their winter jackets

Students staying on task and observing the frost on the grass

Instructional Sequence: Experience Element

Steps for Experience

Element
Time

The teacher will:

The students will:

Now we are going to try

and answer our
investigation question,
What happens when
we make a can really
cold? We are going to
start to answer this by
doing an experiment
with a can, ice and salt!
When you go back to
your tables, you will
have these materials on
your desk. You will be
looking at this journal
page and we will talk
about some of the
things that we observe
together.

I am going to pour
some water into the can
at each table. I will then
put the thermometer in
the can. Look at the
thermometer and write
down the temperature of
the water on this spot in
your journal. Mrs.
Houston and I will walk
around and help you
read the temperature.

Now we are going to

see what happens when
we make the
temperature of the can
ever colder. I am going
to put some ice in each

can and Im going to add

some salt. Adding salt
will make the water
colder. Lets make a
prediction about what
might happen to the can
once we make the water
inside even colder.

Mrs. Houston and I will

come around and help
mix the ice with the salt
inside of the can. Look
closely to the outside of
the can. What do you
see happening? Why do
you think this is
happening?

Observe the outside of

the can with your
magnifying glass. Where
do you think this frost is
coming from?

Look at the thermometer

now and see how the
temperature has
changed. What can this
tell us about why frost
was forming?

Management Considerations for Experience Element:

-

Students should be staying on task and participating accordingly

Students should be respectful and responsible

Students should be carefully handling the materials

Instructional Sequence: Explain Element

Steps for Explain Element
Time

The teacher will:

The students will:

Now that we had some

time to make predictions
and see what happened
to the can, we can go
back and answer our
investigation question.
Remember, our question
was what happens
when we make a can
really cold?
Raise your hand and tell
me how to answer this
question.
Good, so when we make
the can really cold we
can see frost appear on
the outside.
Now we must use
evidence to support our
answer.
Raise your hand and tell
me how you know that
frost will appear on the
outside of the can when
we make it really cold
with ice and salt?
o How did the
temperature
change?
o How did the can
feel?

So our evidence is that

1. the frost appeared when the
temperature of the can got
colder
2. the frost wasn't there until
after we put the ice and salt

into the can

Frost forms from the water
vapor in the air. When it
gets to a freezing
temperature like the
temperature that our
thermometer said, it turns
into ice crystals, or frost.
Today we got to experiment
making our own frost and
now we know that it comes
out of the air when we see
it on the ground!

Management Considerations for Explain Element:

-Students should be sitting on their assigned spots on the rug, facing
the board
-Students should raise their hand to participate and answer questions
accordingly
-Students should have the opportunity to share their thinking in a way
that is fair and respectful to the rest of the class
-Students should behave in a manner that shows that they are
respecting their peers and listening intently

Reflection on Planning
Learning goal for self:

For this lesson I would really like to work on

classroom management. While I am glad that the
students are excited about the material being
learned, it is imperative that rules are followed and
students are aware of what is expected from them. I
would like to practice different classroom
management strategies to be sure that students are
following along in their workbooks and getting the

Preparing to teach this

lesson:

most out of the lesson that they possibly can.

In order to teach this lesson I did the experiment
several times so I knew what to expect when I did it
with the class. I also scripted out the entire lesson
and practiced important key questions that I wanted
to ask.